Paper: Oregonian, The (Portland, OR)
Title: LAST-MINUTE REPLACEMENT RISES TO OCCASION, BOOSTS WHEELMEN 
Date: August 26, 1990

It was only after Jacob Heilveil of Honolulu had wheeled his  wheelchair across the finish line of The Oregonian Hood-To-Coast Relay  Saturday that he realized what he had gotten himself into.


``This is unbelievable,'' he said of his experience as a member of  ``Wheelmen Eat Bees -- Film At Eleven,'' the first wheelchair team to compete  in the 191-mile relay from Mount Hood to Seaside.``I didn't think it would be this tough,'' he said. ``It was amazing.''


For Heilveil, it was that and more.


Heilveil, who on Wednesday will begin his first year at Kapiolani Community College in Honolulu, found out he would be competing in the Hood-To-Coast only minutes before the wheelmen were scheduled to depart Timberline Lodge at 9:40  p.m. Friday.


That's when the team discovered that one of its members, Leroy Monson,  would be unable to compete. Heilveil, 20, has Jim Martinson of Seattle to  thank for his opportunity to be a part of the Wheelmen.


Martinson, a member of the Wheelmen, owns a Seattle business that  specializes in sporting equipment for physically disabled people -- such as  water and snow skis, and wheelchairs designed for basketball, racing and  tennis.


Martinson, 43, met Heilveil in 1983 at a competition in Philadelphia for  physically disabled people.


So, when Heilveil visited Martinson's store earlier this month to check out a racing chair, Martinson told him about the Hood-To-Coast and encouraged him  to accompany the team. Heilveil said he jumped at the opportunity, even though at the time there was scarcely a chance he'd be able to race.


``I was so excited,'' he said. ``And I was hoping there would be an  opening.''


Heilveil made the most of his chance, wheeling his chair in four legs of  the relay. The last one included the draining home stretch on the soft sand on the beach near the finish line in Seaside.


``You cannot push with these tires,'' Heilveil said after completing the  task with assistance from teammate David Trevino. ``These are mainly racing  tires. They just dig into the sand.''


Martinson jokingly said Heilveil could have rolled himself across the sand  without assistance -- in two hours.


Heilveil's grace under pressure impressed Martinson.


``Jacob is incredible,'' Martinson said. ``He took all of Leroy's spots.  He's a hard worker. He wants to be good at his sport. And he's fun because  he's always challenging everybody.''


Martinson said he was inspired by the Wheelmen's performance, and is  looking forward to competing again next year.


The Wheelmen finished eighth overall in the men's open division. Their time was 18 hours, 9 minutes, 10 seconds.


``I'll look at this thing with a little different light,'' Martinson said.  ``I'd like to come back with nine guys and aim for bettering the five-minute  mark.''